Creating an Inclusive Capital by Richard Holloway

Edinburgh has long been a divided city, with wealth on one hand, and poverty on the other. In the late eighteenth century, the creation of the New Town led to the geographical division of rich and poor which continues today, albeit with a new spatial spread. The OneCity report in 2000 confirmed that this division still existed, highlighting not just deprivation in particular areas, but exclusion on the grounds of belonging to a particular group or community. The report made a bold challenge to city institutions to take action to make the city a more equal place. In this lecture, Richard Holloway, chair of the OneCity commission, will discuss the state of the city today, where progress is evident and what problems persist or have indeed worsened. He will then go on to explore some ideas for using creativity and music to tackle the exclusion of some of the city’s most deprived young people.